First Minister, the Rt. Hon Peter D. Robinson, MLA and the deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, MLA today confirmed the attendance of senior business representatives from the USA, France, China, Japan and Canada at next week’s Investment Conference.

The conference, on 10 and 11 October, aims to profile Northern Ireland’s growing reputation as a premier investment location to potential and existing inward investors.

The First Minister said: “This Investment Conference will provide an excellent opportunity for Northern Ireland to build an economic legacy on the back of the highly successful G8 Summit. I look forward to welcoming company representatives from major worldwide economies to Northern Ireland.

“Foreign investment into Northern Ireland is hugely important to our economy. As well as bringing new jobs it also provides excellent benefits for our local businesses, including supply chain and joint venture opportunities.

“The conference will give us the opportunity to say loud and clear to over 100 potential investors that Northern Ireland is a great place in which to invest and to grow your business.”

The deputy First Minister said: “We aim to attract potential investors as well as existing investors to the Investment Conference. It is equally important for our economic development to secure re-investment from companies that have already committed to locating here as well as encouraging new investors.

“Senior executives from HBO, Bombardier, Seagate, Allstate and Caterpillar will be taking to the stage at the conference to share their experiences of investing here. Their involvement will provide excellent first-hand testimonials of why it is good to do business in the north of Ireland. Our skilled workforce, advanced telecommunications infrastructure and very competitive operating costs are just some of the reasons that attract hundreds of foreign direct investors here.”

The conference, hosted by the First and deputy First Minister, is being organised by Invest NI, working closely with UKTI. The conference is sponsored by Danske Bank and British Airways.